Legislation & Regulation

The 2017 Session of the Mississippi Legislature began last Tuesday, January 3. With all committee chairpersons in place and the legislative calendar already set, the session is off and running!

Just two days into the session, MASI has already begun working on our Workplace Wellness Tax Credit – a bill that would establish tax incentives for employers offering wellness programs for their employees. On Wednesday, January 4, MASI met with Lt. Governor Tate Reeves to ask for his support.

A delegation headed by MASI President Maury Hull of Hol-Mac Corporation included Mr. Charles Holder, founder and owner of Hol-Mac, Donnie Smith, VP of Human Relations and Public Relations for Rush Health Systems, and Dan Gibson, Executive Director of MASI. Also in attendance were Tim Moore, Executive Director of the MS Hospital Association and Richard Roberson, Director of Governmental Affairs for the MHA.

At the meeting, Mr. Hull told of great success in Hol-Mac’s wellness program, and how an annual corporate investment of nearly one half million dollars was resulting in tremendous savings in health insurance expense – evidence that the modest investment of state tax dollars into a tax credit would very likely reap impressive returns and pay for itself. The point was made also that many individuals who are participating in employer-sponsored wellness programs are actually employee spouses, who are currently on the state’s health plan – teachers being a prime example. It only stands to reason that as these individuals become healthier, the state of Mississippi will reap the benefit.

MASI appreciates the kindness and receptive spirit shown to us by the Lt. Governor in Wednesday’s meeting. We are hopeful that his support will help take this bill to victory. The bill passed the House last year by a nearly unanimous vote. All we need is for the Senate to concur.

If you’re like me, you really get tired of hearing about how fat we are. Do we really need anyone to tell us?? Sure we have some of the best cooks in the world, but it’s just awful how much we get picked on. Travel to any other place, especially a foreign country, and it’s easy to see why we are fat – talk about awesome Southern cuisine!

The cornerstone of MASI’s 2017 Legislative Agenda is the Workplace Wellness Tax Credit, to allow $1 million in tax credits for employers who provide wellness programs for their employees. This is a Win-Win proposal for workers’ comp plans and health plans both! Rep. Jeff Smith and Sen. Joey Fillingane have both graciously agreed to file the bill again for MASI. We will post it as soon as it hits the legislative website. As a revenue bill, we will be facing a later deadline than general bills – and we will be sure to keep you posted on its progress.

JACKSON – With the 2016 Spring Session of the Mississippi Legislature now in the books, the list of bills now either passed or awaiting approval by the governor is set. And as the Legislative Watchdog for our members, MASI is pleased to provide this final update.

As in years past, many dangerous bills were introduced – bills that if passed would have been very harmful to the self-insured workers’ comp and health community. We are proud of the fact that these bills again failed to pass, thanks in large part to the support of friends at the Capitol such as Senate Insurance Chairman Videt Carmichael and House Insurance Chairman Gary Chism. We thank them for their leadership and support.

MASI Helps Pass New Adjuster Bill

An important bill that MASI was involved in helping pass was SB2193, which creates a new license for workers’ comp adjusters. We believe this is a positive step forward for our industry and will result in better trained adjusters who will better serve the injured workers in our state. We hope to assist with adjuster training using the curriculum we have created for our Certified Self-Insured Workers’ Comp Professional program. This bill also creates parity and reciprocity with other states. A worrisome amendment was removed during conference, and we expect the governor to quickly sign this bill.

Workplace Wellness Tax Credit Dies In Final Hours

Mississippi’s Workplace Wellness Tax Credit died unfortunately in the final hours of the legislative session. We were hopeful that HB408 would prevail, having passed the House by a margin of 115 to 6. The Senate never acted on it, however, allowing it to die, as did the Senate version, SB2016.

House Ways and Means Chairman Jeff Smith fought valiantly to keep our Wellness Tax Credit alive by attaching it to the House Conference Report on SB2922, the Historic Tax Credit Bill. In the final hours of negotiations, however, the Senate struck the Wellness Tax Credit from the conference report.

If passed, this credit would have allowed $1 million in tax credits for employers who provide wellness programs for their employees, making Mississippi one of only four states to offer such a powerful incentive for healthy living.

We look forward to better results next year, however, and we do thank Governor Bryant, Speaker Gunn, and Insurance Commissioner Chaney for their support.

Other Bills That Have Passed…

Other bills we have been watching that have now been passed are as follows:

SB2070 – This bill requires accommodations by employers and public facilities for mothers who are breastfeeding. We believe this bill constitutes good public policy in that it will promote a healthy practice that is proven to contribute to the long term health of our citizens.

SB2189 – This bill changes the risk-based capital requirements for life and/or health insurers upon company action level event.

SB2192 – This bill allows the Insurance Commissioner to have more authority over taking action against non-resident producers who have been sanctioned for malfeasance in other states.

SB2300 – This bill revises eligibility for coverage in the Comprehensive Health Insurance Risk Pool and clarifies when an association may close enrollment.

SB2362 – This bill, called the Budget Transparency and Simplification Act, requires that all special funded agencies including the MWCC by placed under the control of the General Fund. Time will tell if it results in increased costs at the Commission, which could have an impact on our members.

Mississippi’s Workplace Wellness Tax Credit may be on its way to becoming law! It cleared a major hurdle this week: the Mississippi House of Representatives passed it by a margin of 115 to 6. Authored by House Ways and Means Chairman, Jeff Smith of Columbus, HB408, would allow $1 million in tax credits for employers who provide wellness programs for their employees. The tax credit would be capped at half of the cost of the wellness plan, up to a maximum of $20,000 per employer, and would be available on a first come, first serve basis.

MASI applauds Chairman Smith for his leadership and support of this important issue. His enthusiasm for this bill has never wavered, and we appreciate his leadership.

MASI also wishes to thank House Speaker Philip Gunn. Many will recall that Speaker Gunn enthusiastically expressed his support of the Wellness Tax Credit at the 2014 Fall Conference, and this week he acted on that endorsement and helped ensure its passage.

HB408 now heads to the Senate, where a companion bill, SB2016 awaits action in the Senate Finance Committee. This bill is authored by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Joey Fillingane of Sumrall – and MASI applauds and appreciates his support!

Speaking to a record crowd yesterday at MASI’s 9th Annual Winter Conference, MS Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney shared optimism that Mississippi’s Workplace Wellness Tax Credit may be passed this year. Along with an excellent update on the latest Affordable Care Act mandates, Commissioner Chaney applauded the concept of promoting wellness among the state’s employers, reporting that his own department has initiated a wellness program and is already seeing positive results. “People are getting healthier,” he said. “They are losing weight – diabetes is being reversed in some cases. It’s been really good.”